Rough waters

Things have changed a little in our adoption story. I'm sad to say that we have run into some complications with our 3 year old boy. I am not sure how much information I am allowed to share publicly, so I will not share much except to say that it appears there will be a some what lengthy waiting period before he can be adopted. My heart is SO sad and I don't understand why, but it is not my place to ask why, it is my place to trust God's plan. We don't have all the answers but we do know that our God is sovereign and He loves this little boy waiting for a forever family. We are praying through our options of how to move forward and will keep everyone updated as we proceed.
Please pray for:
- complete clarity for our family: "Your own ears will hear Him. Right behind you a voice will say, “This is the way you should go,” whether to the right or to the left. Is 30:21
- protection for both our 1 year old girl and 3 year old boy: "He gathers the lambs in His arms and carries them close to His heart" Is 40:11
- Christ to make a way for our adoption of 2 children: Delight yourself in the LORD and he will give you the desires of your heart. Ps 37:4

During my quiet time this morning I read the following verses and it was as if the Lord were speaking directly into my soul:

"Listen to the Lord who created you... you are precious to Me. You are honored and I love you. Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will gather you and your children from east and west." Isaiah 43:4-5

Moved

We are officially in our new home - it's been a challenging experience, but one FULL of blessings. The most difficult part is all of the things that were second nature at the other house: turning on the lights, throwing away trash, brushing teeth, getting a drink .... take effort and thought which makes them feel difficult (thank you Julie for helping me articulate my anxiety). If you take that and multiply it by 6 individuals struggling with the basics, a day can be exhausting. But, we have internet now, so I wanted to send a quick update that we are here. Pictures are coming soon - promise!!!

Match

TODAY -

We went here:


















To get these signed:














Because we've been matched with:






We will be receiving official referral paperwork on an adorable 3 year old boy and beautiful 1 year old girl. Until we sign the referrals nothing is official, but we are already head over heels for these little ones!!! YWAM Ethiopia is still waiting for one document on the little boy and then the referral paperwork can be completed - praying that is SOON!!!

Today we drove to Austin (7 hours round trip) to visit the Secretary of State's office. It was the last step in finishing up our second dossier. Funny, because when I was putting our first dossier together, I am pretty sure I said "I will never do this again!" -- and whadda ya know? I just did!!! Funny how seeing two beautiful smiling faces can motivate!!

The time line from here is a bit complicated because of a new regulation requiring the orphanage to obtain the kids' birth certificates BEFORE a court date will be assigned and rainy season is approaching which will close courts for about 6 weeks. All of that said, we know that our God is in control and just as HE ordained these two children to be ours, HE knows what lies ahead and when we will get to hold them ---- we can hardly wait!!

Specific prayer requests:
- missing paperwork on little boy to be received quickly
- orphanage to obtain birth certificates quickly
- timely court date
- God's protective hand to be on both of them

Do not be afraid, for I am with you. I will bring your children from the east and gather you from the west .... everyone who is called by my name, whom I created for my glory, whom I formed and made. Isaiah 43:5,7

Together

Craig made it home safely and he brought all the kids the most beautiful Chinese pajamas!! (Hint: look closely - notice anything?)

Prayers please

We would covet everyone's prayers over the next few days as we have some decisions to make regarding the adoption. Craig is still in China so he is praying during the night while I am sleeping and I am praying during the day while he is sleeping. We can hardly wait for him to return so we can pray together!! Specifically, will you please pray with us for the following:

1) God's will to be revealed
2) complete clarity
3) undivided obedience

James 1:5-6 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind. Matthew 7:7-8 Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds; and to him who knocks, the door will be opened.

Camp

Our church kids camp starts tomorrow. While this is technically 'kids' camp - we are making it into family camp. Craig is corralling 12 third grade boys (bless him), Hannah is going for her 3rd year, Luke is going for his 2nd year, and this is Katy's first year. I am coordinating crafts for the camp and so Emily Jane is my little side-kick (but don't tell her that, she thinks she is old enough to be a 'real' camper). The theme this year is fantastic - it's called Seeds & Fences - they will be studying the life of Joseph and it is going to be truly wonderful. The boys' groups are vegetables and the girls' groups are fruits. So we have a brown (and pink) pineapple - Katy, an orange orange - Hannah, and blue corn - Luke & Craig. Which leads to the next picture - I bet not many of you are the proud owners of a cornhead and we have TWO! They are blue now - seeing Craig wear it makes me laugh so hard I almost wet my pants. I'll make sure to take pictures.
We have our hootenanny attire, our homemade glow-in-the-dark shirts, and our premier movie night glam wear (can't wait to post pics of Luke - his costume is GREAT!). We have shorts and shirts in orange, blue and brown (and pink). We finally found Crocs for everyone (does anyone wear these for anything other than camp?). We unpacked towels from moving boxes and will take sheets off the beds tomorrow (all the others are packed in boxes) and we have enough colored hairspray to live in the 80's. We will write on the car windows in the morning. It's official - I think we are ready!!!
We are truly looking forward to the next 4 days together. Craig's travel schedule for the rest of the month is insane -- more on that later -- we are really going to cherish the days we all have together just having fun: blobbing each other, having a whip cream fight, fishing, worshiping, and learning more about God's provision in our lives.
Oh how I want my kids to understand God's sovereignty in their lives -- He knew why it would be so important for us to all be together this week and weekend -- He knows and will provide as the next few weeks play out in all their craziness - more on that later, remember?- He knows where our children are in Ethiopia and He knows when we will meet them. It thrills me to think we will hopefully have more children by camp time next year.

Jeremiah 29:11-13 "For I know the plans I have for you," declares the LORD, "plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope and a future. Then you will call upon me and come and pray to me, and I will listen to you. You will seek me and find me when you seek me with all your heart."

Camp pictures to come - and more on our move. We are in for a FUN BLESSED FOUR DAYS at camp!!

What can a box hold?

Our lives are in boxes and boxes and boxes ... and I've discovered that boxes can hold more than books, dishes, toys and linens, they also hold memories!! LOTS of memories. I am usually a thrower awayer -- I am more likely to toss something into a big plastic trash bag (the black kind so the kiddos can't examine the contents) than keep it. But packing the house has been different, I am finding it hard to get rid of things because I feel like I am throwing away the memory. So, we are moving many more boxes than I thought we would but that makes me happy because we are taking our memories with us to here ...
This is the new home!!! It fits our family so well, and God has been amazing in providing so many things that we asked for - very specific things. We will have a few weeks of transition - we'll have to be out of our house, but we won't be able to take possession of our new home yet, so we are calling it vacation. We will spend some time at the lake house and probably visiting family -- who knows maybe we'll rent an RV and travel around.

Adoption update:
We are still next on the list for a young sibling group. Just to recap what that means - we are approved for up to 4 kids between birth-4 years old. The reality in Ethiopia right now is that one of the governmental offices in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia is closed for undetermined reasons and for an undetermined amount of time. As long as this particular office is closed, no referrals can be issued. As disappointing as this is, I KNOW without a doubt that God is in control and HIS timing is impeccable. I have been reminded that this is part of the process, trusting, faith building, not to mention preparing here at home for the tangible changes of having more kids. I have been challenged in the past few weeks to articulate our hearts for orphans and for Ethiopia. Lots of questions from friends and well as strangers has challenged me to be bold and courageous - to speak up for those that can't speak up for themselves - to explain the heart of our family. This has been increasingly more difficult recently because I have been reminded that this goes against a large population of society and the look from strangers when they hear our story reminds me that there are SO many that need to hear of Jesus' love - for them and for our world! I continue to praise God for calling our family to this journey, it is thrilling to hear my children talk about their siblings in Ethiopia, to see the excitement in their eyes when we talk about it, and to reach out to children that are different than them. God has placed His hand on their hearts and HE is changing them and I am SO grateful because it is far beyond anything I could teach them.
This delay in referral also gives us the chance to raise more money to cover the remaining adoption expenses. Please look at the pics of the new t-shirts we are selling from 147 million orphans. They are SO soft and cute. I also have plenty of Uganda bead necklaces in stock.